title: Cell-ECM traction force modulates endogenous tension at cell-cell contacts.
abstract: Cells in tissues are mechanically coupled both to the ECM and neighboring cells, but the coordination and interdependency of forces sustained at cell-ECM and cell-cell adhesions are unknown. In this paper, we demonstrate that the endogenous force sustained at the cell-cell contact between a pair of epithelial cells is approximately 100 nN, directed perpendicular to the cell-cell interface and concentrated at the contact edges. This force is stably maintained over time despite significant fluctuations in cell-cell contact length and cell morphology. A direct relationship between the total cellular traction force on the ECM and the endogenous cell-cell force exists, indicating that the cell-cell tension is a constant fraction of the cell-ECM traction. Thus, modulation of ECM properties that impact cell-ECM traction alters cell-cell tension. Finally, we show in a minimal model of a tissue that all cells experience similar forces from the surrounding microenvironment, despite differences in the extent of cell-ECM and cell-cell adhesion. This interdependence of cell-cell and cell-ECM forces has significant implications for the maintenance of the mechanical integrity of tissues, mechanotransduction, and tumor mechanobiology.
authors.affiliation: Institute for Biophysical Dynamics, University of Chicago, Chicago, IL 60637, USA.
authors.forename: Venkat
authors.initials: V
authors.lastname: Maruthamuthu
authors.forename: Benedikt
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Sabass
authors.forename: Ulrich S
authors.initials: US
authors.lastname: Schwarz
authors.forename: Margaret L
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: Gardel
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002448:Cell Adhesion / Q000502:physiology; D002450:Cell Communication / Q000502:physiology*; D002460:Cell Line; D004285:Dogs; D004847:Epithelial Cells / Q000166:cytology / Q000502:physiology*; D005109:Extracellular Matrix / Q000502:physiology*; D040542:Mechanotransduction, Cellular / Q000502:physiology*; D009369:Neoplasms / Q000378:metabolism / Q000473:pathology / Q000503:physiopathology